


Ethereal Hearts

by louieistrash



Category: TWICE (Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-14 05:33:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28790295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/louieistrash/pseuds/louieistrash
Summary: At a certain point in every person’s life, the body is nothing but an empty vessel for a lost soul; yet there's beauty when this point leads to a path  of other ethereal hearts.
Relationships: Jeon Jungkook/Kim Dahyun, Jeon Jungkook/Kim Dahyun/Kim Taehyung | V, Kim Dahyun/Kim Taehyung | V
Comments: 1
Kudos: 19





	Ethereal Hearts

Kim Dahyun was always thankful for the family she grew up with. Despite being the only daughter of Kim Seongha and Lee Ilhwa, she never felt alone for her parents made sure that she was always showered with love and care. She was never pressured to excel – she was encouraged. She wasn’t dictated on what habits she should engage in – she was always allowed to pursue her passion. They were not rich but they almost always had enough to survive and if there was something in excess – she believed that it was the love that they had for each other.

However, their life was never perfect. Growing up, Dahyun witnessed how their family encountered severe problems. The worry would show through her mother’s eyes but her father – her father would always put on a smile despite everything and he would then tell them,

“Nothing would destroy us as long as we have each other.”

And Dahyun admired her father ever since. She loves her mom equally but a certain place in her heart was reserved for her admiration for her father. Thus, even if she was given freedom to choose her own career path, she decided to take on architecture in the near future and she would always imagine herself working together with her father.

“Dahyun, do you have a boyfriend?” her father asked her as he was watching her do some random sketches.

“What?” Dahyun tore her gaze from her notebook and met her father’s eyes as she was slightly taken aback by the question.

“I mean, if you do have a boyfriend, don’t hesitate to tell us, okay?” her father then awkwardly coughed.

“So that you could grill him alive?” Dahyun grinned.

“And then skin him to death,” her father replied seriously.

“Dad!” Dahyun exclaimed and when their eyes met, the both of them ended up laughing together. By the time that her laughter subsided, Dahyun added, “But no, dad. I don’t have a boyfriend yet and I won’t have one until I find someone like you.”

“Someone like me?” her father asked.

“Yes. Someone like you. I actually envy mom. Where else would I find a man who would still court me every day and give me flowers every week even after marriage? Your sweetness for mom never died down too. Your love story is actually better than anything I’ve seen in the movies,” Dahyun explained sincerely with a smile hanging on her lips. She inched closer to her father as she whispered, “I sincerely want a man like you, dad.”

“I am your man, Dahyun,” he replied, “I would always be yours and your mom’s man.”

With awe melting her heart, Dahyun enveloped her man into her arms as she whined, “What should I do? I might never have a boyfriend because my father had already set my standards too high. I might grow old alone.”

“Even if you grow up as an old lady with cats, we would never let you feel alone, Dahyun,” her father whispered into her ears and the both of them smiled sweetly at each other.

Kim Dahyun knew that the future holds too many uncertainties but she believed that as long as she was blessed with wonderful parents, _all is well._

* * *

“You should have just told him that you have a boyfriend.”

“I don’t have one, Gahyeon~” Dahyun sang as she took a creative picture of dried leaves on the pavement.

“But you’re taking a picture again for that virtual boyfriend of yours,” Gahyeon replied.

“Virtual boyfriend? Who? _Winter?_ I am just doing this to cheer him up,” Dahyun retorted.

“Are you sure? What if he becomes attached to you because of all your words for him? What if he suddenly asked you for a meet-up then he turned out to be a creep?” Gahyeon fired.

“But he seems to be a nice person who just needs someone to talk to,” Dahyun answered with a pout.

“How sure are you? Do you know him that well? Do you even have his real name?”

“We don’t need people’s names to know their stories and knowing a name doesn’t even guarantee knowing the person well,” Dahyun argued.

“Urgh,” Gahyeon groaned in frustration, “You and your anonymous chats.”

Dahyun just grinned and replied, “The world is harsh for people like _Winter_ and sometimes I wish that I could share my parents with them so that they wouldn’t feel sad. But that’s not possible so I’m passing the kindness instead and perhaps Winter could pass it on too. Wouldn’t that be awesome?”

“Are you sure you are aiming for Architecture for college? Not psychology or philosophy or teleology?” Gahyeon squinted.

Dahyun chuckled and linked her arms with Gahyeon as she said, “You should try it too. _Anybodyoutthere.com.”_

“No, thanks. Last time I did it, I chatted with no one but people who would want to get into someone else’s pants. Your Winter must be a rare gem,” Gahyeon uttered.

“He must be,” Dahyun whispered with a smile hanging on her lips.

“Hey! Why does it feel like it’s you who is already getting attached to that stranger?” Gahyeon widened her eyes. She sighed before continuing, “If you would want to be his permanent friend and not just a virtual friend, I suggest that you meet him up before that site closes down. It doesn’t have that numerous users, anyway.”

For a while, Dahyun was engulfed in silence. It had already been three months since Winter and she had started chatting and the idea of losing a dear, yet anonymous, friend somehow pained her.

* * *

Hoseok suggested him to visit anybodyoutthere.com whenever he’s bored. Hoseok was saying that it would be fun using anonymity to talk about anything under the sun. Succumbing to peer-pressure, he did as told.

Hi.

_Hi._

_How are you?_

He paused for a while and closed his eyes but then he told himself that at least for tonight, he’d let the world see his cracks.

I’m on my bed right now but I feel like I am under the sea, drowning. I know that I should be thankful for being more than blessed and for all the successes that I am experiencing but every award just adds pressure. It’s as if there was no room for mistakes and failure. People expect me to be perfect but I am not. I am broken. Often are the times that I feel alone; I feel like people would leave me once I disappoint them or I cease to be of use for them. Often are the times that I feel empty because I couldn’t see the purpose of what I am doing except for achieving what is expected of me.

There were already tears at the corner of his eyes when he finished typing. For a while, the screen was frozen with the same dialogue and being new to the site, he wondered if the stranger he was chatting with had already disconnected. Maybe it was a site made entirely for fun and not for venting out bottled feelings like his. But then a long reply came.

_It must be suffocating for you to answer “I’m okay” all this time to all the ‘How are you?’ that have been asked to you. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Always shaping yourself to the expectation of others would make you lose your own identity. It would be nice to excel in everything you do but give yourself a break too – have fun. Uhm. I don’t know how to encourage you more since I don’t think that I have found my purpose in life as well. For now, let’s just continue struggling until we see that path that had always been meant for us – where our passion, vocation, mission, and profession would all intersect. Let’s breathe until everything makes sense._

He sat up from his bed and read the message one more time before his lips curved into a genuine smile. He was about to reply with ‘thank you’ but then there was another ‘ting’ and then came a follow up message from the stranger.

_If there are times that you feel alone, you could always talk to me. I’d be your virtual friend, Winter!_

The smile that was hanging on Taehyung’s lips grew bigger as he replied,

_Nice meeting you, Sunny. Please take care of me._

Kim Taehyung almost had everything. He’s got the looks and the brains that people envy. He excelled in everything he did and he had always been showered by admiration. There were numerous confessions and praises and Taehyung would reply with a polite thank you with the brightest smile that he could muster. Making people proud brings happiness to him but it was happiness that was short-lived because behind every medal and trophy was a Taehyung who concealed all his insecurities. But that night, the monster that was growing inside his chest was put into a sleep by the words from a certain stranger.

And Taehyung would always be thankful for _Sunny_ for saving him from the sea of insecurities and pressures he was in.

* * *

_Not all those that have fallen from great heights are dreadful._

Taehyung was about to reply but then a booming voice from his side called his attention.

“Our Kim Taehyung is smiling out of the blue again,” Namjoon cooed.

“His virtual girlfriend sent him a picture again,” Hoseok seconded him as he peeked at Taehyung’s phone but then he frowned as he added, “It’s a picture of fallen leaves. How about you ask her to send a picture of herself?”

“Right now, we are enjoying the anonymity between us – Hey!” Taehyung couldn’t even finish arguing because Namjoon suddenly grabbed his phone and ran away.

“Request for a picture of herself! Faster!” Hoseok suggested as he blocked Taehyung from grabbing the phone from Namjoon.

“Give it back!” Taehyung shouted as he snatched his phone back.

“Chill dude. I didn’t ask for her picture,” Namjoon said.

“Thanks,” Taehyung mumbled but then when he checked his phone, his eyes widened.

“I asked her for a meet-up instead,” Namjoon then grinned widely. Hoseok laughed out loud as he high-fived the former while Taehyung could only stare at the screen of his phone. The message was already sent and it could not be undone. He was already thinking of ways on how to tell Sunny that it was his friends using his phone buzzed with a notification.

_Sure. Let’s meet up._

“She said yes!” Hoseok shook his shoulders, “This is your opportunity to finally know her!”

“And to verify if it is really a girl!” Namjoon added but Taehyung’s facial expression was still frozen. He nudged him and then whispered, “Come on, Taehyung. Aren’t you a tiny bit curious of this Sunny of yours? Maybe you could be real friends now and not just virtual friends after your meet-up.”

“And it would be a jackpot if she’s gorgeous,” Hoseok uttered. “If she’s not… well, at least you know what she looks like and you could meet beyond the four corners of your screen to have fun.”

Sometimes, Taehyung hated how his friends were so good with words and how he himself was so weak to resist their persuasions. He was afraid that meeting Sunny would just make him more attached to the stranger but he was curious and hopeful – hopeful that he could make her role in his life permanent.

* * *

“Dahyun, what if he is a freak?! And you’re travelling all the way to Seoul!”

Dahyun chuckled as she could hear the panic in Gahyeon’s voice over the phone. She then replied, “I told you. Winter is a good person. We’re also meeting in public so there’s no need to be worried. I have my cellphone with me so I’d be quick to call for help and remember that I’m the best at sprinting in our school so I could assure you that I can run. Besides, you were the first person to suggest that I meet him, Gahyeon.”

”Fine but be careful, okay?” Gahyeon sounded like her mom.

“Yes. I understand,” Dahyun answered before they both said goodbyes.

Afterwards, she took a picture of her shoes and sent it to Winter along with a message that she read aloud, “Just waiting for my mom to come home then I’d be ready to go.”

Her phone then vibrated seconds after and she smiled as she saw a picture of a cup of coffee.

“I’m already here but no pressure. I could always wait for you. Take care,” she read again with a bright smile.

She looked forward to finally meeting Winter. She would finally have a visualization of him and she would finally be able to hear how his voice sounds like. Most of all, her father would also come back today from his two-day business trip. She could already imagine how excited she would sound by the time that she would tell her father that she met up with a friend. A chuckle escaped her lips and she then looked up at the sky from her patio; seeing that the weather was as fine as it could be, she believed that all would be well today.

Her daze was then halted by the ringing of their telephone. She quickly made her way towards their sala and answered the call immediately, “Hello?”

“Hello. Is this Kim Seongha’s residence?”

“Yes, but he is not here today,” she replied.

“May I ask who am I speaking with?”

“Kim Dahyun. His daughter.”

“Is your mother at home?”

“Not yet but I guess she’d be arriving anytime soon. Do you want to leave a message for my parents? And who am I speaking with?”

“I am a nursing staff at Gwangju Hospital. Miss Kim, I regret to inform you that your father had been in a car accident. He was dead-on-arrival and his remains are with us…”

Every word that came after seemed inaudible for Dahyun. Her feet were frozen on the ground. There was an eerie sound ringing in her ears. Her gaze remained fixated on one spot. She felt like her soul was leaving her body and she didn’t know how long she seemed lifeless while just holding the phone. But then a hand turned her around.

“Dahyun, what’s wrong?” her mother asked.

“Mom,” she whispered and the tears came cascading.

* * *

“He was with someone in the car when the accident happened. She too, was dead on arrival but we can’t seem to contact any relative.”

“We’d take responsibility for now,” Ilhwa replied to the hospital staff.

Dahyun doesn’t know where her mother’s strength was coming from. Dahyun felt like she was half-dead and half-alive at that time. She could fully function but it was like life was taken out of her. Everything was too sudden. She could remember that everything was well – even the weather was in her favor – but the next thing she knew, she had to accompany her mother to the hospital and in the morgue was her father’s remains along with a woman’s body that she was not familiar with.

Suddenly, she felt arms wrapping around her body and her mother whispered, “You have to be strong. We at least need to fix things for your father’s funeral. We’d get through this, Dahyun. Together.”

And she could only nod in reply as she bit back a sob.

“Then can you retrieve your father’s belongings from the nurse?” her mother said in the same whispering manner.

Dahyun nodded yet again but before going, she hugged her mother tight yet again, hoping to get some strength from her. However, she became weak yet again when she was handed her father’s things. There was nothing much – the bag that he usually uses for work, his wallet and his phone; a smile spread across Dahyun’s lips as she went through them.

There were still sketches inside his bag along with other documents. Inside his wallet was a small family picture of them. Tears were again forming in her eyes as she carefully removed it from his wallet but as she did so, she came across another picture. Soon, she realized that it was a picture of the woman who her father was with when the accident happened.

She was well taught on how to respect privacy but curiosity took over Dahyun and she proceeded on looking at his phone.

* * *

He was awakened by the continuous ringing of his phone. He grunted for his body was still aching from yesterday’s fight and he sat up struggling as he finally answered the call. Seeing that it is from an unknown number, he furrowed his eyebrows.

“Who’s this?”

“This is a staff from Gwangju hospital. Is this Jeon Jungkook I am speaking with?”

“Yes,” Jungkook replied as he licked the clotted blood on his lips.

“I’m sorry, Sir. I regret to inform you that your mother has been involved in a car accident.”

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> The story is a bit slow-paced, and I guarantee that it will be sad, but I will put trigger warnings when they apply. Hope you'll enjoy this story though.


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